gatherings: a playlist + a photo challenge all rolled into one

well, folks, it’s almost november. and, i’ve created a super cozy playlist for these dark, gloomy, chilly days (for us in the northern hemisphere). but, never fear, southern hemisphere friends, there’s something for you in this playlist too.

it’s really a bunch of music that’s all about gathering together – in all sorts of ways. and that applies to us all. anytime. anywhere.

my inspiration came from the fact that i am american – and in november, we americans celebrate thanksgiving. one of my most favorite holidays. even though black friday’s consumerist insanity takes over part of the weekend, thanksgiving day remains something that is grounded in simplicity and community.

simply put, for me, november it is a month about coming together and giving thanks.

i mean, what else is there to do when it’s dark + cold out, right? it’s just to cozy up together with candles and blankets and yummy stuff. to chat late into the night. to laugh and share and slow down.

to gather together is, in my opinion, to slow down and enjoy the simple things in life. it usually centers around food, or drinks, or music, or games. but, the most important part of gatherings is the intimacy, the relationships, the bonds that form over candlelight or drinks or under blankets and the dark night sky..

and, even though we may live miles and countries and continents apart from one another, we can still be connected to one another. we can still gather and just be together.

so, for this month, i invite you to gather with me. think of us as a tribe. people over the world, connected by lyrics and music and the desire to live a life with meaning and purpose.

HERE’S WHAT WE ARE GONNA DO:

for november, i challenge us to carve out the time + space to create moments to gather. to give thanks, to count our blessings, and to celebrate the gift of life together.

what i invite you to do is this:

1. to listen to one song a day (from the playlist). they are in a specific order, which is written at the bottom of this post. let that song seep into your soul. feel it. let it inspire you.
2. and then use your interpretation/feelings about the song to take a photo. be creative. capture a photo that symbolizes the song of the day for you.
3. share your photo on instagram or Facebook, and use the hashtag #mymonthofgatherings. with that hashtag, we can find one another, and find even more inspiration. we can create a tribe.

listen to the music of the month, day by day, and let it remind you what coming home, finding home, creating home, really means. and then, use your home to become a place of gathering – a sanctuary of acceptance, love, peace,  and rest to all who enter.

one day. one song. one photo. for 30 days. 

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you know, my grandfather did a bunch of research on our ancestors. he and his siblings discovered quite easily that we are directly, completely, straight-lined related to william bradford, the governor of the plymouth colony who settled in massachusettes in the 1620s.

these are the american pilgrims that you may have heard about. they suffered, struggled, and many of them died during their first year in plymouth. those who made it to their first harvest in the autumn had the local native americans to thank for their survival. and, while, not everything was good about the relationship between the two cultures, they did (as legend would have it) gather together one day to break bread as a community.

whether it was all peace and love (which i am sure that it wasn’t), i like to hold on to the hope that for just one day, my ancestors, the pilgrims, sat together with the natives in peace. with respect, admiration, and gratitude for one another. if just for one day.

and so, that is my hope for us this november.

to simply gather together. to come home. to create community. to just be together, and love each other, and spread a little bit more peace in this world.

i do hope you’ll join me. let music + photography inspire you to find ways to gather more people, more love, more grace around your table.

click >> here to go to the playlist on spotify. 

date | title | artist

 

happy listening (and photographing!!) here’s to filling our november with moments that are blessings, gatherings that are inspiring, and people who, even if they are miles away, touch our souls.

onwards + upwards!! xoxo